Open AccessThe non-canonical Wnt-PCP pathway shapes the caudal neural plate
Author(s) -
Beatriz LópezEscobar,
José Manuel Caro-Vega,
Deepthi S. Vijayraghavan,
Timothy F. Plageman,
José A. Sánchez-Alcázar,
Roberto Carlos Moreno,
Dawn Savery,
Javier Márquez-Rivas,
Lance A. Davidson,
Patricia YbotGonzález
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.15
H-Index - 36
eISSN - 1477-9129
pISSN - 0950-1991
DOI - 10.1242/dev.157487
Subject(s) - biology , wnt signaling pathway , neural plate , evolutionary biology , computational biology , anatomy , zoology , genetics , gene , neural crest
The last stage of neural tube (NT) formation involves closure of the caudal neural plate (NP), an embryonic structure formed by neuromesodermal progenitors and newly differentiated cells that becomes incorporated into the NT. Here we show that as cell specification progresses, neuromesodermal progenitors and their progeny undergo significant changes in shape prior to their incorporation into the NT. The caudorostral progression towards differentiation is coupled to a gradual reliance on a unique combination of complex mechanisms that drive tissue folding, involving pulses of apical actomyosin contraction and planar polarised cell rearrangements, all of which are regulated by the Wnt-PCP pathway. Indeed, when this pathway is disrupted, either chemically or genetically, the polarization and morphology of cells within the entire caudal NP is disturbed, producing delays in NT closure. Indeed, the most severe disruptions of this pathway prevent caudal NT closure and result in spina bifida. In addition, a decrease in Vangl2 gene dosage also appears to promote more rapid progression towards a neural fate, but not the specification of more neural cells.